A new social media KPI for FMCG brands

How should we measure engagement? As the digital manager for several FMCG brands, one of my challenges is to bring clarity and consistency to how we measure our activity. This question about engagement was one of the most persistent.

Before going any further, I should lay down my starting assumptions about how we should measure digital, as it provides context for the discussion. First, we look to measure three pillars for each campaign: reach, engagement and conversion. Second, these pillars should be prioritised according to the objective of the campaign. Third, we define an appropriate KPI for each pillar, for each type of ad format or channel.

The point of this approach is to safeguard against running campaigns which zone in too far on a single pillar, at the expense of any sort of value being delivered. Generating cheap impressions is easy, but how do we know if they were worth anything? We can all create engaging content, but does it get to the right audience? Does it do anything for the brand?